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Kerboodle: Resources and Assessment www.oxfordsecondary.co.uk/acknowledgements © Oxford University Press 2015 1 of 72

Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar

Reference Guide

The GCSE SPAG Reference Guide is a resource for teachers who wish to refresh and consolidate their knowledge of spelling, punctuation and grammar.

The importance of SPAG

Ofqual states that all GCSE English Language specifications (taught from September 2015) should enable students to:

write effectively and coherently using Standard English accurately

use grammar correctly, punctuate and spell accurately

acquire and apply a wide vocabulary, alongside a knowledge and understanding of

grammatical terminology.

Ofqual also states that all exam boards need to judge students’ writing skills against the following Assessment Objectives (AOs):

AO5

Communicate clearly, effectively and imaginatively, selecting and adapting tone, style and register for different forms, purposes and audiences

Organize information and ideas, using structural and grammatical features to support coherence and cohesion of texts

AO6

Candidates must use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation. (This requirement must constitute 20% of the marks for each specification as a whole.)

In GCSE English Literature, Ofqual states that all specifications should enable students to:

write accurately, effectively and analytically about their reading, using Standard English

acquire and use a wide vocabulary, including the grammatical terminology and other literary and linguistic terms they need to criticize and analyse what they read.

These requirements are embodied in the following English Literature Assessment Objective:

AO4

Use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation. (This requirement constitutes 5% of the marks for each specification as a whole.)

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Introduction

So, spelling, punctuation and grammar are key skills that students will be assessed on in their English Language and English Literature GCSEs. However, explicit knowledge and understanding of grammar, punctuation and spelling is not an end in itself, or simply to pass exams; it is the gateway to:

understanding and appreciating good writing

writing effectively, with clarity and precision so that ideas and knowledge can be communicated with ease.

It is a life skill that is relevant far beyond GCSE requirements.

Some fortunate students find that they have an intuitive grasp of English language skills, and they do not need explicit SPAG teaching. However, the majority of students will find explicit teaching helpful to secure their understanding of how writers craft their work, and also to improve their own writing (and spoken) skills.

How to embed SPAG effectively in teaching

Research has shown that drawing students’ attention to SPAG concepts within the context of studying real texts is far more effective than trying to teach them as separate, stand-alone skills. However, there will be times during teaching when it becomes obvious that some students would benefit from closer analysis of certain SPAG features, in order to consolidate their knowledge and understanding.

In the GCSE English Language and English Literature Student Books, which this Reference Guide accompanies, there are SPAG symbols to draw attention to particular opportunities to focus on aspects of grammar, spelling or punctuation. However, during teaching, many other opportunities will arise, often as a result of students’ own work and this Reference Guide is designed to give teachers sufficient background and reference material to be confident in their teaching of all aspects of grammar, punctuation and spelling.

Many teachers may not have benefited from formal grammar tuition themselves unless they have studied other languages, or their own knowledge may simply be based on terminology that is now superseded by current terms specified in the National Curriculum. This Reference Guide is based on the National Curriculum documents specified by Ofqual (e.g. The Glossary of Grammatical Terms that supports the National Curriculum Programmes of Study for English) and should bridge the gap between what is now taught and tested in primary schools, and common approaches to current teaching of grammar in secondary schools. Where different terminology is used, both have been included.

This Reference Guide consists of a list of grammar and punctuation concepts. Each entry has an explanation for teachers with examples. For some of the more complex concepts there is also:

information on common errors and how to avoid them

advice giving tips on usage.

The entries are listed alphabetically. Cross-references are hyperlinked for easy navigation.



Introduction

The final section of this Reference Guide focuses on spelling. This does not drag through sets of spelling ‘rules’, but instead looks at areas of spelling that commonly cause confusion and advises on how to bring clarity. It covers:

apostrophes and plurals

homophones

similar sounding nouns and verbs

silent letters and hidden syllables

-ough words

breaking the rules: i before e, except after c

most commonly misspelt words

top tips for improving spelling.

The teaching of grammar, punctuation and spelling should always be done in context. However, some students may benefit from additional support provided by the SPAG interactive activities that can be found on Kerboodle.

Note: Certain words, for example ‘organize’ and ‘criticize’, have been spelt with ‘ize’ throughout this guide. It is equally acceptable to spell these words and others with ‘ise’.



Contents

Active and passive voices ........................................................................................................ 7

Adjectives ................................................................................................................................... 8

Comparative and superlative forms ......................................................................................... 9

Adverbs .................................................................................................................................... 10

Intensifiers ............................................................................................................................ 11

Adverbials ................................................................................................................................ 12

Fronted adverbials ................................................................................................................ 12

Apostrophes............................................................................................................................. 13

Possession ............................................................................................................................ 13

Contraction ............................................................................................................................ 15

Articles ..................................................................................................................................... 16

Auxiliary and modal verbs ...................................................................................................... 17

Capital letters ........................................................................................................................... 18

Acronyms .............................................................................................................................. 18

Clauses ..................................................................................................................................... 19

Main clauses ......................................................................................................................... 19

Subordinate clauses .............................................................................................................. 19

Relative clauses .................................................................................................................... 19

Embedded clauses ................................................................................................................ 20

Cohesive devices ..................................................................................................................... 21

Colons ...................................................................................................................................... 22

Commands ............................................................................................................................... 23

Commas ................................................................................................................................... 24

Conjunctions ............................................................................................................................ 26

Coordinating conjunctions ..................................................................................................... 26

Subordinating conjunctions ................................................................................................... 26

Connectives ............................................................................................................................. 28



Contents

Contractions............................................................................................................................. 29

Dashes ...................................................................................................................................... 30

Determiners .............................................................................................................................. 31

Possessive determiners ........................................................................................................ 31

Interrogative determiners ....................................................................................................... 32

Demonstrative determiners ................................................................................................... 32

Ellipsis ...................................................................................................................................... 33

Exclamations............................................................................................................................ 34

Full stops .................................................................................................................................. 35

Abbreviations ......................................................................................................................... 35

Hyphens ................................................................................................................................... 36

Infinitives .................................................................................................................................. 37

Inverted commas (speech marks) and direct speech ........................................................... 38

Narrative viewpoints ................................................................................................................ 39

Nouns ....................................................................................................................................... 41

Proper nouns ......................................................................................................................... 41

Common nouns ..................................................................................................................... 41

Collective nouns .................................................................................................................... 41

Abstract nouns....................................................................................................................... 42

Modifying nouns .................................................................................................................... 42

Noun phrases ........................................................................................................................... 43

Paragraphs ............................................................................................................................... 44

Parenthesis .............................................................................................................................. 45

Participles ................................................................................................................................ 46

Phrases ..................................................................................................................................... 47

Prepositions ............................................................................................................................. 48



Contents

Pronouns .................................................................................................................................. 49

Possessive pronouns ............................................................................................................ 49

Relative pronouns .................................................................................................................. 49

Demonstrative pronouns ....................................................................................................... 50

Questions ................................................................................................................................. 51

Semicolons............................................................................................................................... 52

Sentences ................................................................................................................................. 54

Sentence types ...................................................................................................................... 54

Sentence forms ..................................................................................................................... 54

Speech, direct and indirect ..................................................................................................... 56

Standard English and non-Standard English ........................................................................ 57

Statements ............................................................................................................................... 58

Subject and object or complement ........................................................................................ 59

Subjunctives ............................................................................................................................ 60

Verbs and tenses ..................................................................................................................... 61

Finite and non-finite verbs ..................................................................................................... 61

Tenses ................................................................................................................................... 61

Present tense .................................................................................................................... 61

Past tense ......................................................................................................................... 61

Future tense ...................................................................................................................... 62

Present progressive (continuous) tense ............................................................................ 62

Past progressive (continuous) tense ................................................................................. 63

Present perfect tense ........................................................................................................ 63

Present perfect progressive tense ..................................................................................... 63

Past perfect tense ............................................................................................................. 64

Past perfect progressive tense .......................................................................................... 64

Transitive and intransitive verbs ............................................................................................ 65

Spelling ..................................................................................................................................... 66



Active and passive voices

In an active sentence, the subject does the action, often to an object. The verb is said to be in the ‘active voice’.

For example:

The referee blew the whistle.

In a passive sentence, the subject is having something done to it. The verb is said to be in the ‘passive voice’.

For example:

The whistle was blown by the referee.

Advice

The active voice is used most commonly in writing, but the passive voice is used when the writer wants to:

withhold or conceal information at first

build suspense

emphasize what happened, rather than who did it

sound more formal.

Common errors and how to avoid them

Excessive use of the passive voice can make a text sound very stilted and awkward. Encourage students to use mainly the active voice, unless they want to create specific effects, as described in the ‘Advice’ section.

subject object

subject prepositional phrase



Adjectives

An adjective gives information about a noun or a pronoun. It can be positioned immediately before the noun, or after some verbs, such as look, be, seem, get. (See Subject and object or complement.)

For example:

A muddy football

The man is tall.

Advice

Some adjectives describe what something is like, e.g. a blue pen; others give an opinion about something, e.g. a fantastic idea.


Adjectives are sometimes referred to as ‘describing words’, but this is misleading because some verbs and adverbs can also be said to be describing things.

For example:

The moon shone.

She walked quickly.

adjective noun

noun verb

verb ‘to be’, in the third person singular

noun adjective

verb adverb



Adjectives

Comparative and superlative forms

When adjectives are used to compare and contrast, we can add suffixes to the root word. We add -er when comparing two things and -est when we are comparing more than two things.

For example:

I am quick. I am quicker. I am quickest.

Some adjectives make their comparative and superlative forms by using the words more and most, rather than adding suffixes.

For example:

That costume is more ridiculous than the last one.

That is the most ridiculous suggestion.

Some other adjectives which take more or most for their comparative and superlative forms are:

awful

correct

fantastic

frightening

horrible

important

incredible

perfect.

the superlative form of the adjective

the comparative form of the adjective

adjective

the comparative form

the superlative form



Adverbs

An adverb describes a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. (It never adds information to a noun.) Adverbs can answer questions such as how, when, where?

Adverbs are sometimes referred to as belonging to different categories such as:

adverbs of manner (how)

adverbs of time (when)

adverbs of place (where).

For example:

He performed the trick cleverly and I was really impressed.

I saw him yesterday.

We took our books outside.

They often quarrel.

adverb telling us when something happened

adverb telling us how often something happens

adverb describing the verb ‘performed’, answering the question,

How did he perform the trick?

adverb describing the adjective ‘impressed’, answering the

question, How impressed was I?

adverb telling us where something happened



Adverbs

Intensifiers

Some adverbs are used for emphasis – they can intensify adjectives and other adverbs.

For example:

rather sad

quite unusual

very quickly

Advice

You can often form an adverb by adding the suffix -ly to the end of an adjective.

For example:

slow + -ly = slowly


Sometimes adverbs are overused. Make sure students don’t use them when there is no need.

For example:

She screamed loudly.

He gripped his bat tightly.

intensifying adverb

adjective

intensifying adverb

adjective

intensifying adverb

adverb

adverb suffix adjective

This adverb is unnecessary, because you can’t scream quietly

This adverb is unnecessary, because ‘gripped’ implies a tight hold



Adverbials

An adverbial is a word or a group of words that give more information about a verb. Adverbials include adverbs, as well as some types of phrases or clause.

For example:

We left the cinema at 2.30 p.m.

She arrived on Wednesday.

Fronted adverbials

Most adverbials appear at the end of a sentence, but some appear at the beginning. These are called fronted adverbials.

For example:

At last, the cat came home.

During the holidays, we often went to the park.

A comma, indicating a slight pause or separation from the rest of the sentence, follows most fronted adverbials.

Used correctly and appropriately, fronted adverbials can really improve the style of a student’s writing.

Some adverbials act as cohesive devices, which help to link parts of text together. These may also be known as connectives.

Some of the most common adverbials used as cohesive devices are:

As a result,

On the other hand,

In contrast,

adverbial, giving more information about when ‘we left’

adverbial, giving more information about when ‘she arrived’

adverbial, at the front of the sentence

adverbial, at the front of the sentence



Apostrophes

An apostrophe is a punctuation mark used for two different purposes: possession and contraction (to show that letters are missing).

1 Possession – the apostrophe shows that something belongs to someone or something.

For example:

Kate’s temper

A plant’s leaves

The position of the apostrophe can show whether the thing or person is singular or plural.

For example:

The girl’s bad behaviour

(Refers to just one girl because the apostrophe comes after the singular noun.)

The girls’ bad behaviour

(Refers to more than one girl because the apostrophe comes after the plural noun.)

Advice

If a singular word ends in ss, the possessive form still adds ’s.

For example:

The witness’s statement

If a singular word ends in s, the possessive form usually still adds ’s.

For example:

A bus’s passengers

The planet Mars’s gravity

James’s book



Apostrophes

If a plural word does not end in s, then the possessive form still adds ’s.

For example:

The children’s bags

The men’s teeth

The women’s sports

Some possessive forms of personal names sometimes omit the final s, particularly classical or longer names.

For example:

Venus’ eyes

Nicholas’ uniform


Avoid the common error of using an apostrophe to make plurals (sometimes known as the greengrocer’s apostrophe), e.g. lettuce’s instead of lettuces.

To check whether you need an apostrophe, ask yourself if you need to show possession (it belongs to something or someone) or if you need to show omission (there are letters missing, e.g. does not contracts to doesn’t). If you don’t need to show either, you don’t need an apostrophe.

Possessive determiners, e.g. its, hers, yours, ours, theirs are often mistakenly given apostrophes, but they are not necessary.

Another common error is to add apostrophes to plural nouns when used with possessive pronouns, but this is not necessary.

For example:

His clothes were torn.

plural noun needs no apostrophe because the possessive determiner ‘his’ shows who the clothes belong to



Apostrophes

2 Contraction – the apostrophe shows when two words have been compressed into one, and some of the letters are missing.

For example:

do + not = don’t

does + not = doesn’t

you are = you’re

he is = he’s

would have = would’ve

Advice

Note that the apostrophe is placed where one or more letters have been missed out.

For example:

we’ve (we have)

shouldn’t (should not)


Do not confuse with words that use similar letters.

For example:

you’re (you are) is different from the possessive determiner your (as in That is not your

coat, it’s mine!)

it’s (it is or it has) is different from the possessive determiner its (as in Its wheels were

punctured.)

we’re (we are) is different from the verb were (as in They were going to the cinema.)

could’ve (could have) is often mistakenly written ‘could of’, which is wrong. The same applies

to would’ve, and should’ve.

If in doubt, say the contracted words in full to yourself, to see if they still make sense in the sentence.



Articles

Articles are a type of determiner, which go in front of nouns and adjectives to show who or what the sentence is about.

A, an and the are articles. A and an (used before a vowel sound) are known as indefinite articles; the is the definite article.

For example:

an apricot

a flag

the slime

indefinite article used before a word that starts with a vowel sound

indefinite article used before a word that starts with a consonant

definite article



Auxiliary and modal verbs

An auxiliary verb is a small ‘helping’ verb which goes in front of a main verb, e.g. will, can, may, must.

Primary auxiliary verbs refer to events in the past or present, and are forms of the verbs to be, do and have.

For example:

I have hidden the contraband.

We are planning our escape.

They did enjoy the part.

Primary auxiliary verbs can also help to make questions.

For example:

Did you go to the cinema?

What are you cooking?

Modal verbs are a type of auxiliary verb that help to show the future tense, and can also show possibility, desire or obligation.

The ten modal verbs are: will, would, can, could, may, might, shall, should, must, ought

For example:

We ought to go home now.

I may be an astronaut.

You must take your brother with you.

She will join us later.


The terms ‘auxiliary’ and ‘modal’ verbs are sometimes confused. Auxiliary verb is a general term referring to all types of verbs that ‘help’ the main verb. A modal verb is a type of auxiliary verb, which is important for showing degrees of possibility or obligation.



Capital letters

Capital letters are used at the beginning of all sentences and proper nouns, such as the individual names of people, places and titles.

For example:

Aneena

Benjamin

Scotland

London

The Hobbit

They are also used for days of the week and months of the year.

For example:

Wednesday

June


Capital letters are not needed at the beginning of seasons, e.g. spring, winter.

Remember that the personal pronoun I, is always a capital letter, never i.

Acronyms

An acronym is a name or word made from the initial letters of other words. It usually starts with a capital letter, and often continues with capital letters (although not always).

For example:

EU = European Union

OPEC = Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries

BBC = British Broadcasting Corporation

Nato = North Atlantic Treaty Organization



Clauses

A clause is a special type of phrase (group of words) that contains a subject and a verb. It can make up a whole sentence or be part of a sentence. (See sentence forms for more information about how clauses make up sentences.)

There are two types of clauses – main and subordinate (or dependent).

Main clause – this clause carries the main information and can be a complete sentence on its own.

Subordinate (or dependent) clause – this clause gives background detail and depends on the main clause for it to make sense. It cannot stand alone as a sentence.

For example:

The actor left the stage, carrying his sword before him.

Relative clause

A relative clause is a type of subordinate clause. It starts with the words who, which, that, whom or whose and gives more information.

For example:

I like the trainers that you wore yesterday.

Advice

Note that sometimes the relative pronoun (e.g. who, that or which) is omitted from a relative clause, particularly in speech.

For example:

There’s the dog [that] I was telling you about.

main clause subordinate clause

main clause relative clause



Clauses

Embedded clause

An embedded clause refers to a subordinate clause that is inside a main clause, but sandwiched between two commas.

For example:

Alfie, who was full of energy, ran up the escalator.


Avoid confusing phrases and clauses. Clauses always contain a verb.

For example:

A small cat is a phrase; it has no verb.

A small cat scratched me is a clause because it contains a verb, ‘scratched’.

embedded subordinate clause separated from the

main clause by two commas

main clause

main clause



Cohesive devices

Cohesive devices are words that link different parts of a text together. They are the ‘glue’ that gives a text cohesion. They can link words within a clause or phrase; link clauses, sentences and whole paragraphs together.

Cohesive devices can include pronouns, determiners, conjunctions and adverbs.

For example:

Skyla picked up an entry form for the competition.

She was determined to win it.

There will be a training session before we play the match on Saturday.

Advice

Note that the terms ‘discourse markers’ and ‘reference chains’ are sometimes used to describe cohesive devices.

pronouns link back to Skyla and the competition in previous sentence

conjunction links the two clauses, showing the time relationship between them



Colons

A colon is a punctuation mark (:) used to separate parts of a sentence when the second part explains, balances or completes the first clause. The second part can be a phrase or a clause.

For example:

He was delighted to win the prize: a new car.

I have something to tell you: I’ve won tickets to the festival!

A colon is also used to introduce a list of items.

For example:

You will need: butter, eggs, milk and flour…


Sometimes people put dashes after colons but this is unnecessary.

Do not use a capital letter after a colon, unless it is a proper noun.

Colons are sometimes confused with semicolons, but their uses are different:

A colon is like a ‘gateway’ that introduces examples or more detail about what’s gone before.

A semicolon separates two main clauses that are of equal weight, but are still linked in some way. The two main clauses that a semi-colon divides could be separate sentences. (See the semicolons entry for more detail about other uses of a semicolon.)



Commands

A command is one of four sentence types (the others are Questions, exclamations and statements).

A command is an instruction or order, and usually includes the imperative form of the verb at the beginning of the sentence.

For example:

Go outside. Look for the treasure. Bring it back to me.

These are all imperatives



Commas

A comma indicates a pause between parts of a sentence or separates items in a list.

For example:

Football is my favourite sport, but I also like tennis.

Commas can signal the start and end of an embedded clause.

For example:

Lucy, who is my best friend, lives next door to me.

You also use commas in lists.

For example:

We’ve got two dogs, three cats, four goldfish and one parrot.

Advice

Commas are often used after fronted adverbials, e.g. In 1066, the English lost…

They can also be used to introduce direct speech, e.g. The boy spoke up, “Why isn’t there any food?”

Generally, there is no comma before ‘and’ in a list of items unless it is necessary to avoid ambiguity.

For example:

My favourite meals are pizza, steak, fish and chips, and kebabs.

Traditionally, Oxford University Press used a comma before the final ‘and’ or ‘or’ in a list of items, so it was called the ‘Oxford comma’ or ‘serial comma’. This style is becoming less common now, and students tend to be advised against using it in their own writing.



Commas


If a sentence has too many clauses and commas it can be confusing. It is better to revise it, dividing it up into more sentences, so that it reads fluently and is easy to understand.

Comma splicing is also a common error. This occurs when a comma is used between two independent clauses. If each clause makes sense by itself, then it is incorrect to use a comma to separate them.

For example:

Hannah is good at baking, she likes to make cakes.

If there are two independent clauses, then they can be joined with a semicolon or separated into

two separate sentences with a full stop.

For example:

Hannah is good at baking; she likes to make cakes.

Hannah is good at baking. She likes to make cakes.



Conjunctions

A conjunction links words or groups of words to another part of the same sentence.

There are two types of conjunction: coordinating and subordinating.

Coordinating conjunctions can link together two main clauses in a sentence, using words such as and, or and but.

For example:

I went to the supermarket and I bought some apples.

Coordinating conjunctions can also link together words or phrases of equal weight, e.g. black and white or deep purple and bright pink.

Subordinating conjunctions are words that link together a subordinating clause with a main clause.

For example:

I fell off my skateboard because a squirrel jumped across the path.

first main clause second main clause

coordinating conjunction

main clause subordinate clause

subordinating conjunction



Conjunctions

Advice

Some of the most common coordinating conjunctions are and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

Some of the most common subordinating conjunctions are if, while, because, although, after, since.


Remember that the prefix co- means ‘jointly’, so a coordinating conjunction joins things of equal importance.

Remember that the prefix sub- means ‘under’, so a subordinating conjunction joins things that are of different importance (one is ‘under’ the other).


Connectives

The term ‘connective’ is a general, informal term that is sometimes used in schools to describe words that connect ideas expressed in different clauses. However, most ‘connectives’ can be more accurately categorized as either prepositions, conjunctions or adverbs.


Contractions

See apostrophes.



Dashes

A dash is a punctuation mark (–) that can show a pause in a sentence, or link two clauses or sentences together.

For example:

The waves were huge – I was terrified.

A pair of dashes can show parenthesis.

For example:

She – poor girl – walked into the trap.


Some people use too many dashes, particularly in informal writing such as text messages and emails to friends. In more formal writing, try to use a variety of punctuation, including commas, full stops, colons and semicolons.



Determiners

A determiner is a word that goes in front of a noun and any of its adjectives, and helps to give it some definition. Determiners can include numbers or pronouns such as five, some, this, whose.

Articles are a type of determiner. A and an are known as indefinite articles; the is the definite article.

For example:

Three foxes crept down the street.

The children like sweets.

Possessive determiners

Possessive determiners are positioned in front of a noun and any of its adjectives. They tell you who or what something belongs to.

For example:

It was my idea to have a party.

I think her hair is purple now.

Our house is in the middle of the street.

Other possessive determiners are: your, his, its, their.

Common errors

Possessive determiners are sometimes confused with possessive pronouns, but possessive pronouns always stand instead of a noun, rather than in front of a noun.

This number is a determiner that tells us how many foxes there were

This is a determiner – known as a definite article – that shows it refers to certain children, not just any.



Determiners

Interrogative determiners

Interrogative determiners are part of a question, and are positioned in front of a noun.

For example:

Which concert shall we go to?

What drink would you like?

Whose shoes are these?

Demonstrative determiners

Demonstrative determiners help to identify what is being referred to. Again, they are always positioned in front of a noun.

For example:

This surfboard is amazing.

Those people look lost.

Other demonstrative determiners are: these, that.



Ellipsis

An ellipsis is a punctuation mark made up of three dots, and used to show that a word has been missed out, or that a sentence is unfinished.

For example:

Read the playscript lines, “I thought you knew about my sister… last summer.”

Don’t tell me…

Ellipsis is also a general term (rather than a punctuation mark) describing the omission of a word or phrase which is expected and predictable.

For example:

Becky followed the path and she caught up with Josh.

Advice

Note that the plural of ‘ellipsis’ is ‘ellipses’.

this pronoun would generally be omitted from the sentence



Exclamations

An exclamation is one of the four sentence types. (The others are statements, commands and questions.)

An exclamation always ends with an exclamation mark (!). This shows that the sentence is expressing strong feeling or drama, such as surprise, anger or pain.

For example:

Look out!

Please help me!

Hey, that hurt!

Wow, you got here quickly!


An exclamation mark is always at the end of a sentence. No full stop is required after it. Try not to use too many exclamation marks. They are most effective if used sparingly, and never use more than one in the same place.



Full stops

A full stop (.) comes at the end of a sentence. It shows that the sentence is finished and complete.

Advice

A full stop is always followed by a capital letter at the start of the next sentence.

A full stop can also be used in an abbreviation, to show that some letters are missing at the end.

For example:

p.m. = post meridiem (after noon)

etc. = et cetera (and other things)

Prof. = Professor


Sometimes writers use too many commas and other punctuation marks within long sentences. Dividing some text into shorter sentences can add clarity and variety.



Hyphens

A hyphen (-) is used to join words or parts of words together.

For example:

kick-off

mix-up

co-operate

Hyphens can help to avoid confusion.

For example:

a man eating lion

This could mean a man is eating lion flesh.

a man-eating lion

The hyphen shows that it is the lion who eats people. Man-eating’ is a compound adjective that describes the lion.

Advice

Note that a hyphen is shorter than a dash and does not have a space on either side of it.



Infinitives

The infinitive is the basic form of a verb such as run, play, sing, be, have.

In a dictionary, verbs are usually listed in their infinitive form.

The infinitive form of the verb is often used after the word ‘to’ and after modal verbs.

For example:

If you want to play in the band, you must audition.

I will be sad

modal verb

infinitive

infinitive



Inverted commas (speech marks) and direct speech

Inverted commas (also known as speech marks) are used to show the actual words spoken in direct speech.

In indirect (reported) speech, inverted commas are unnecessary.

For example:

Lucy said that it is our school trip tomorrow.

For example:

“We’ve got our school trip tomorrow,” said Lucy.

Advice

Inverted commas can be single or double. Whichever style is chosen, it should be consistent throughout the piece of writing.


Remember that if you open (start) inverted commas, you also need to close (finish) them. Always check through your writing that the inverted commas are in pairs, to show the beginning and end of speech.

Punctuation relating to what’s said, should always go inside the inverted commas, including question marks, exclamation marks and ellipses.

If the direct speech is part of a sentence, add a comma before the final inverted commas and continue to explain who spoke, e.g. said Lucy. Note that the full stop comes after the name of the speaker, and said is all in lower case.

inverted commas show the start and finish of the words that Lucy said



Narrative viewpoints

There are three narrative viewpoints: first person, second person and third person.

1 First person narrative – the narrator/speaker retells his or her first-hand account of events, or the story, often using the pronouns I (first person singular), or we (first person plural).

For example:

I wandered back to the house alone.

We could hear the band from a distance.

The music came to us, slowly and quietly.

2 Second person narrative – the narrator speaks directly to the reader, involving them very closely with what is happening (in fiction) or being said, using the pronoun you.

For example:

You follow the tracks through the snow until you find a glove caught on a tree branch.

You won’t believe my story, but you must listen anyway.

If you look carefully, you will see glints of gold in the stones.

3 Third person narrative – the narrator/speaker stands outside the events or story and tends to be more objective and omniscient (all-knowing), often using the pronouns he, she, it, they.

For example:

The crowd surged forwards, unaware of the hazards.

She loitered near the pool.

They were quickly submerged.



Narrative viewpoints

Advice

If students query the naming of first and third person, you might want to introduce the table of pronouns, showing first, second and third person, in both singular and plural forms.

Person Singular Plural

First I we

Second you you

Third he/she/it they

Some texts contain a mix of narrative voices. For instance, a speech or advert may contain a mix of first and second person, so the audience/reader feels directly involved.

For example:

I believe that together you can work this out.

An advice text might combine third and second person voice.

For example:

The new sports centre is being renovated, but you can look at the plans to see how much it will be improved.


When students are writing a story, it is important that the narrative voice is consistent. For example, if they start with a first person narrator, they should continue with that, unless they are using different narrative viewpoints for a specific structural effect.

Remind students to check that their ‘narrative voice’ doesn’t change partway through their work, unintentionally.



Nouns

A noun is a word that stands for a person, place or thing. It is the subject or object of a verb. Nouns are sometimes described as ‘naming words’.

A proper noun identifies a particular place, person or time.

For example:

Jamie

India

Saturday

December

A proper noun starts with a capital letter.

A common noun refers to people or things in general.

For example:

bridge

hat

pitch

meal

book

A collective noun refers to groups of people or things.

For example:

flock

team

crowd

choir

swarm



Nouns

An abstract noun refers to ideas or qualities that cannot be seen or touched.

For example:

help

fun

danger

friendship

happiness

A modifying noun (also known as a ‘noun adjunct’) is used before another noun to give more information.

For example:

The football team

A mountain bike

This chicken soup

Advice

Nouns can also be classified as countable (e.g. button, girl) or non-countable (e.g. stuff,

weather)


Students do not always recognize collective or abstract nouns, as they usually find it easier to envisage nouns as physical objects. A useful test for a noun is to check that it makes sense when ‘the’ is put in front of it.

For example:

The fun lasted…

The danger passed…

The friendship endured…

Specific teaching of collective nouns can be helpful. Point out that these collective nouns are treated as singular, even though they refer to lots of people or animals.

For example:

The team of football players arrived at the airport.

A swarm of bees surrounded the hive.

The audience is mainly female.



Noun phrases

A noun phrase is two or more words that act as a noun. The main noun is known as the ‘head word’, and there are often adjectives in the noun phrase.

For example:

The bright red bus stopped suddenly.

A noun phrase does not have to be made up of just adjectives and nouns.

For example:

The man in the moon

Advice

You can identify a noun phrase by taking it out and replacing it with a pronoun. If the sentence still works, then you have identified the noun phrase.

For example:

(The bright red bus) stopped suddenly.

(It) stopped suddenly.

All these words are part of the noun phrase and ‘bus’ is the head word

All these words are part of the noun phrase and ‘man’ is the head word



Paragraphs

A paragraph is a section of writing, made up of more than one sentence, but all the sentences are linked to the same idea. A new paragraph shows a new idea, or time, or place, or speaker in a text.

A new paragraph is usually indented. Alternatively, paragraphs can be separated by line spaces.

Paragraphs help to group information or details together, to make it easier for the reader to understand the flow of the text.

Advice

Sometimes, the first sentence of a paragraph tells the reader what the paragraph is about. Subsequent sentences in that paragraph give more details about the topic. This type of introductory sentence is called a topic sentence.

Note that not all paragraphs begin with a topic sentence.



Parenthesis

Parenthesis is something extra put inside a sentence, marked between brackets, dashes or commas. It is a word or group of words that gives extra information or an extra comment about something in the main sentence.

For example:

He really wanted the new bike – the shiny green one – before the race.

No one told the teacher (not even the other staff) that she was wearing odd shoes.

The opening of the play was delayed, luckily, so I had time to pin my costume together again.


The sentence should never depend on the parenthesis. If you take out the parenthesis, the sentence should still make sense.

The word ‘parentheses’ refers to the pair of round brackets () sometimes used to mark the beginning and end of the parenthesis.



Participles

Verbs have two participles: the present participle and the past participle.

The present participle (which ends in -ing) describes a continuing action or condition.

For example:

We are going to the cinema.

Present participles are sometimes used as adjectives: A guiding light.

They can also be used as nouns: The clapping was deafening.

When verbs are made into nouns like this, they are called ‘gerunds’.

The past participle describes a completed action or past condition.

For example:

We were guided to our seats.

Note that the passive voice uses a participle: The vase was smashed.

Some participles can be used as adjectives: A guiding light.

Past participles are often used as adjectives in the passive voice: The door was locked.

Advice

The terms ‘present participle’ and ‘past participle’ can be confusing because they don’t necessarily link to the present or past time.

For example, I was going, uses the present participle ‘going’, although the sentence is in the past tense.

I am exhausted, uses the past participle ‘exhausted’, although the sentence is in the present tense.



Phrases

A phrase is a group of words in which there is one word that all the other words help to modify (expand or give more detail about).

A noun phrase is two or more words that act as a noun, e.g. a huge monster.

An adjectival phrase is a group of words that act as an adjective, e.g. brightly coloured.

An adverbial phrase is a group of words that act as an adverb, e.g. thirty seconds later.

A prepositional phrase is a group of words that start with a preposition, e.g. with curly hair or under the bridge. (Note that prepositional phrases can be adjectival or adverbial in meaning.)

A ‘verb phrase’ is called a clause and always consists of one or more verbs. If there is more than one verb in a verb phrase, one will be a main verb and the others will be auxiliary verbs, e.g.

ought to go.


Phrases and clauses are often confused. However, if the main modified word is a verb, then it is a clause or sentence.

auxiliary verb

main verb



Prepositions

A preposition is a word that is placed before a noun, pronoun or noun phrase, to show a link to some other word in the sentence.

The word ‘of’ is one of the most common prepositions.

For example:

Her strength of spirit

The quality of the music

I’m fond of chocolate

Prepositions can indicate position or direction.

For example:

Over the canal hung a rope.

Sail towards the horizon.

Prepositions can also indicate timing.

For example:

The air conditioning hummed throughout the lesson.

I’ve been awake since dawn.

Prepositions can also show a relationship between things, people or events.

For example:

I’ll have the pizza without cheese.

That’s three of us against one.

The text was from Phoebe.

Advice

Note that some words can be prepositions or conjunctions, depending on how they are used.

For example:

I haven’t eaten since yesterday. (preposition)

I think we should eat, since we’re all hungry now. (conjunction linking two clauses)



Pronouns

A pronoun is a word that can be used in place of a noun. It avoids repeating the same noun.

For example:

The Prime Minister stood up. She looked furious.

Possessive pronouns tell us who owns something.

For example:

The ticket is yours.

I thought the idea was mine.

Other possessive pronouns include his, hers, its, ours, theirs.

Common errors

Note that possessive pronouns are often confused with possessive determiners. Remember that possessive pronouns stand alone in place of nouns. Possessive determiners come before a noun.

Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses, which give more information about the subject.

For example:

The actor, who fell off the stage, made the audience laugh.

The concert, which was televised, was the last she ever gave.

Other relative pronouns include whose, that, whom.

Advice

Note that the words who and which can also be used as interrogative pronouns, replacing the noun in a question.

For example:

What is that?

Who is that?

pronoun noun



Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns show how near or far people or things are. They include this, that, those, these.

For example:

Those are too shabby to wear.

Give that to the doorman and he will let you in.

Advice

Note that the words this, that, those, these, can be used either as demonstrative pronouns, or demonstrative determiners. If they come before a noun, they are determiners. If they stand alone, in place of nouns, they are pronouns.


There is often confusion about whether to use the pronoun I or me. I is the correct usage for the subject of a sentence, even if there is more than one subject.

For example,

Ricky and I went to the stadium.

If in doubt, test whether the sentence still sounds correct if you remove the other subject (person). For example, I went to the stadium sounds correct, but Me went to the stadium sounds incorrect!

Me is used as the object (direct or indirect).



Questions

A question is one of four sentence types (the others are command, exclamation and statement). A question always ends with a question mark.

For example:

When are you going to start revising?

How are you getting to the party?

Where shall we go after lunch?



Semicolons

A semicolon is a punctuation mark that is used for two main purposes:

to separate two main clauses in a sentence that are closely linked in meaning

to separate items in a list, where the items are longer clauses, rather than just single words.

Separating main clauses in a sentence

When two separate sentences are very closely linked in meaning, they can be joined together in one sentence, using a semicolon. This emphasizes the link between them.

For example:

Dad bought tickets to the pantomime. We’re so excited.

These two sentences can be made into one sentence, using a semicolon, which emphasizes the link between the two clauses:

Dad bought tickets to the pantomime; we’re so excited.

Separating items in a list

Semicolons can also separate items in a list when the items consist of clauses (with a verb).

For example:

For the day trip you will need to make sure: you have brought a waterproof coat; you are wearing sturdy shoes or boots; you have remembered a torch with spare batteries and you have provided yourself with a packed lunch and a drink.

As with normal lists of items separated by commas, the last two clauses are joined not by another semicolon but by ‘and’.

Advice

A semicolon is never followed by a word beginning with a capital letter, unless it is a proper noun or the pronoun ‘I’.



Semicolons


Semicolons are sometimes confused with colons, but their uses are different.

A colon is like a ‘gateway’ that introduces a list, or examples of or more detail about what’s gone before.

A semicolon separates two main clauses that are of equal weight, but are still linked in some way. The two main clauses that a semicolon divides could be separate sentences.

A semicolon also separates a list of clauses with the last two joined by ‘and’. You would not use a colon within a list; you would just use it to introduce it.



Sentences

A sentence is a group of words that makes complete sense on its own. Most sentences:

contain a main verb

begin with a capital letter

end with a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark.

Sentences can be statements, questions, commands or exclamations.

Sentences can be made up of just one single main clause, or two or more coordinating clauses, or a main clause and a subordinate clause.

Sentences with a single main clause contain a subject and a verb.

For example:

The cat chased a mouse.

Sentences with coordinating clauses are made of two or more main clauses joined together using coordinating conjunctions such as and, or or but. These clauses are of equal importance and both could be separate sentences.

For example:

The cat chased a mouse and all the birds watched.

Sentences with main and subordinating clauses that contain at least one main clause and at least one subordinate clause are linked by subordinating conjunctions, such as until, although, after, before, since, because.

subject verb

subject verb verb conjunction subject



Sentences

For example:

She kept running although her foot hurt.

Advice

One way of identifying subordinate clauses is to ask yourself whether they make sense on their own. If they do, then they are main clauses rather than subordinate clauses.

For example:

You must stay in your seat is a main clause which makes sense on its own, but until the bell rings is a subordinate clause that does not make sense on its own.

Sentences are sometimes classified as simple, compound or complex. The first type is a single-clause sentence; the second type is made up of coordinating clauses; the third type is made up of a main clause and one or more subordinate clauses.

main clause subordinating conjunction

subordinate clause



Speech, direct and indirect

For a full explanation of direct and indirect speech, go to Inverted commas (speech marks) and direct speech



Standard English and non-Standard English

Standard English can be spoken with any accent and covers most registers from formal to casual. It is used as a major world language, with only minor variations. Standard English is used in most books, newspapers and formal documents. Students should be encouraged to write in Standard English, unless they are including dialogue which needs an informal or colloquial style, or involves a particular regional dialect.

Non-Standard English may be different in different parts of the country. It is mostly used in speech in informal situations. The spelling, punctuation and grammar may be different from Standard English.

For example:

He didn’t do nothing. (This double negative is not Standard English.)

Me mum (Standard English would be ‘My mum’)

It were great. (Standard English would be ‘It was great’)



Statements

A statement is one of four sentence types (the others are command, exclamation and question).

A statement is a sentence that declares or states something, clearly and definitely.

For example:

I am hungry.

The boys are on their skateboards.

It is snowing.



Subject and object or complement

The subject is who or what does the action of the verb.

The object is who or what is acted upon by a verb.

For example:

Millie invited Vineeta to the party.

The dog grabbed the bone.

Advice

There can be more than one person or thing as the subject of a sentence, as long as they are both doing the action of the verb.

For example:

Peter and John are going for a walk.


When you are talking about yourself as the subject of a sentence, always use I not me.

For example:

My father and I love sailing is correct (My father and me is incorrect).

If in doubt, make the subject (person) singular to see if the sentence still makes sense.

For example:

I love sailing is correct (Me love sailing doesn’t make sense).

In some sentences, the verb does not have an object, but takes a complement instead. Verbs such as to be, seem, feel, become (and their inflections) take a complement that is usually an adjective, adjectival phrase, noun or noun phrase.

For example:

Glasgow is a vibrant city. (Noun phrase acts as a complement)

I feel sad. (Adjective acts as a complement)

subject object

subject object

two subjects



Subjunctive

The subjunctive form of a verb is used as a very formal expression of wishes or possibilities (something that hasn’t happened yet).

The subjunctive is sometimes used in subordinate clauses that begin with the words that or if.

For example:

If I were you, I’d tell the teacher.

It is vital that she leave without delay.

The report recommends that he go to court.

Advice

The subjunctive is rarely used now in English, except in very formal or traditional contexts.

subjunctive form of verb (not ‘was’)

subjunctive form of verb (not ‘leaves’)

subjunctive form of verb (not ‘goes’)



Verbs and tenses

A verb shows an action, a happening, a process or a state. It is sometimes described as a ‘doing’ or ‘being’ word, but it is most accurately identified by its ability to have a tense, such as the past and present. Every sentence must have a verb.

Finite and non-finite verbs

Every sentence has at least one verb which shows the tense. These are called finite verbs.

For example:

Felix swam across the lake.

Non-finite verbs, such as participles and infinitives, cannot stand on their own: they are linked to a main verb in the sentence.

For example:

Hearing the footsteps behind him, Josh decided to run.

Tenses

The present tense describes something that is happening now. It often (but not always) ends in -s.

For example:

Mum fixes the shelf.

Ben plays on his computer.

Poppy is team captain.

The past tense describes something that happened earlier. It often (but not always) ends in -ed.

For example:

The girls raced to the finish line.

The boys cheered their football team.

The teacher clapped and smiled.

verb showing the past tense

present participle: non-finite verb as part of a subordinate clause

finite verb non-finite verb



Verbs and tenses

Some verbs change completely in the past tense.

For example:

is (present) – was (past)

go (present) – went (past)

think (present) – thought (past)

To show the future tense, we use two verbs, a main verb and an auxiliary verb.

For example:

I will go to the fair tomorrow.

The train might leave in ten minutes.

The present progressive (continuous) tense describes an action in progress now. It uses the -ing form of the verb, plus the present tense of the verb to be.

For example:

I am waiting for my friend.

They are going to the circus.

modal verb, which is a type of auxiliary verb

main verb

modal verb, which is a type of auxiliary verb

main verb

the first person singular, present tense of the verb to be

-ing has been added to the main verb

the third person plural, present tense of the verb to be




Verbs and tenses

The past progressive (continuous) tense describes an action that was ongoing in the past or was still happening when something else happened. It uses the -ing form of the verb, plus the past tense of the verb to be.

For example:

I was watching the game.

You were running towards me when you dropped the ball.

The present perfect tense describes a completed action or event in the past but it is still meaningful or relevant now. It uses the present tense of the verb ‘to have’ with the past participle.

For example:

She has ended the relationship.

The present perfect progressive tense describes something that started happening in the past and is still happening now. It uses the simple present tense of the verb ‘to have’, plus ‘been’, plus the present participle of the main verb.

For example:

They have been hanging around the park for days.

third person singular, present tense of the verb to have

past participle of the main verb to end

third person plural of the verb to have

present participle of the main verb

the first person singular, past tense of the verb to be


the second person singular, past tense of the verb to be




Verbs and tenses

The past perfect tense (also known sometimes as the ‘pluperfect tense’) describes something that happened before something else in the past. It uses the simple past form of the verb ‘to have’, plus the past participle of the main verb.

For example:

She had tricked them for years.

The past perfect progressive tense describes something that started happening in the past and was still happening later. It uses the simple past of the verb ‘to have’, plus ‘been’, plus the present participle of the main verb.

For example:

They had been plotting the coup for months.

Advice

If you feel it is helpful, explain to students that verbs often have different forms, depending on who is the subject and whether they are singular or plural.

The table below shows the different forms for the present tense of the irregular verb to be.

Singular Plural

First person I am We are

Second person You are You are

Third person He/she/it is They are

The table below shows the different forms for the past tense of the irregular verb to be.

Singular Plural

First person I was We were

Second person You were You were

Third person He/she/it was They were

third person singular of the verb to have

past participle of the main verb

third person plural of the verb ‘to have’

present participle of the main verb



Transitive and intransitive verbs

A transitive verb has at least one object in a sentence.

For example:

Omar took the dog for a walk.

We gave the street performer some money.

An intransitive verb has no object or objects to complete the sentence.

For example:

The old man was snoozing.

We must go soon.

transitive verb object

transitive verb indirect object: who we gave it to

direct object: what we gave

intransitive verb

intransitive verb



Spelling

The English language is one of the richest, most diverse languages in the world. It consists of words drawn from a wide range of places and cultures over thousands of years, and the language is still evolving and being added to today.

The fact that words in the English language are drawn from so many sources means that spelling rules are often tricky to apply. English words are not always spelt in the way that they sound. Many have unusual letter combinations; others sound the same but are spelt differently.

There are many resources that focus on spelling rules, particularly for primary level students, but this section of the GCSE SPAG Reference Guide will focus on a few key areas of spelling which are known to cause confusion for secondary students – and for many adults! These areas are:

Apostrophes and plurals (see p x)

Homophones (see p x)

Similar sounding nouns and verbs (see p x)

Silent letters and hidden syllables (see p x)

-ough words (see p x)

Breaking the rules: i before e, except after c (see p x)

Most commonly misspelt words (see p x)

Top tips for improving spelling (see p x).

Apostrophes and plurals

Apostrophes can show possession; they indicate that something belongs to someone or something.

For example:

The singer’s microphone (the microphone that belongs to the singer)

This example is straightforward because there is only one singer, so ’s is added to the word singer.

Confusion sometimes arises when there is joint ownership, particularly when it ends with ‘s’.

For example:

The singers’ microphone (the microphone that belongs to all the singers – there could be

two or more singers sharing the same microphone)

Notice that the apostrophe comes after the plural s.

Note: Certain words, for example ‘organize’ and ‘criticize’, have been spelt with ‘ize’ throughout this guide. It is equally acceptable to spell these words and others with ‘ise’.


Living Literacy: Speaking and listening © Oxford University Press 2014 67 of 72

Spelling

If the noun is plural, but doesn’t end in an s, the apostrophe and s is added at the end.

For example:

The women’s rights (the rights belonging to all women)

The children’s trainers (the trainers belonging to all the children)

Common error

Never use an apostrophe just to show a plural. This is a common mistake.

For example:

Apple’s for sale

Apples for sale

Homophones

Homophones are words that sound the same, but have different spellings and meanings. Encourage students to check that they are using the correct one in the context of their own writing.

Here are some of the most commonly confused homophones:

accept/except four/for/fore profit/prophet

aisle/isle guest/guessed right/write

aloud/allowed heard/herd see/sea

alter/altar here/hear steal/steel

assent/ascent led/lead their/there/they’re

bare/bear morning/mourning through/threw

cereal/serial new/knew vain/vein/vane

descent/dissent no/know wear/where

dessert/desert one/won weather/whether

draft/draught passed/past whole/hole

You may find it helpful to remind students of the difference between the words below.

stationery/stationary

stationery is a noun referring to envelopes, paper and other items used in printed writing.

stationary is an adjective meaning not moving, like a car that is parked.

Connectives

principle/principal

principle is a noun meaning a general rule, truth or belief

principal 1 a noun mean the head of a college or school

2 an adjective meaning the chief or most important

compliment/complement

compliment 1 a noun meaning something said or done that shows approval of someone

2 a verb meaning to pay someone a compliment

complement 1 a verb meaning to go well together with something else; make a thing complete

2 a noun meaning the quantity needed to fill or complete something

3 (grammatical sense) a noun meaning the word or words used after verbs such as‘be’ or ‘become’ to complete the sense.

affect/effect

affect 1 a verb meaning to have an effect upon someone or something, e.g. The news affected my decision to leave.

2 a verb meaning to pretend, e.g. to affect a limp

effect 1 a noun meaning a change as a result of something else, e.g. Deep breaths have a calming effect.

2 a verb meaning to cause to happen or bring about, e.g. Please effect the

changes without delay.

Similar sounding nouns and verbs

The spelling of some nouns and verbs, which sound very similar or the same, can cause confusion. Generally, most of these nouns end with –ce, and most of these verbs end with –se. (Note that this differs in American English.)

For example

Nouns Verbs

advice advise

practice practise

licence license

device devise

prophecy prophesy


Spelling

Silent letters and hidden syllables

There are many words in the English language that have silent letters. This means that their spelling cannot be predicted from the pronunciation of the word. Historically, some of these letters were sounded aloud, e.g. the k in knight, but this is no longer the case.

Students may benefit from being made aware of when these silent letters are likely to occur. See the grid below for some examples.

Silent letters Examples

h at the start of words honorary hour heir honour honest

silent k before n knife knee knock know knuckle

silent w before r write wrestle wrench wrist wrong

silent b following numb tomb crumb bomb

silent g before n gnaw gnarled gnash gnat gnome

silent l following a, o and ou half salmon yolk could should

silent h follows w, c or r whirl whine chord chemist rhubarb

silent p before s or n psychology pseudonym psychopath pneumatic pneumonia

Some words have ‘hidden’ syllables, which means that we don’t pronounce them, but they are nevertheless present in the spelling. Some of the most commonly misspelt words (because of hidden syllables) are:

accidentally favourite

actually medicine

chocolate probably

different realize

every separate



Spelling

–ough words

There are many words spelt with the letters -ough, but their spellings can be confusing because this group of letters can make many different sounds. The grid below shows some examples.

/or/ sound as

in ‘ought’

/o/ sound as

in ‘dough’

/uf/ sound as

in ‘tough’

/ow/ sound

as in ‘bough

/of/ sound as

in ‘trough’

/ura/ sound

as in

‘thorough’

/oo/ sound

as in

‘through’

bought although enough plough cough borough throughout

brought though rough slough*

fought slough*

nought

sought

thought

wrought

*Slough (rhymes with ‘cuff’) is a verb that means to shed, e.g. A beared dragon sloughs the skin from its tail.

Slough (rhymes with ‘cow’) is a noun that means a swamp or marshy area, e.g. They struggled to drag the body across the slough.

Breaking the rules: ‘i before e, except after c’

Unfortunately, many of the spelling ‘rules’ that young children are taught often have so many exceptions to them that they cause further confusion.

One such rule is ‘i’ before ‘e’, except after ‘c’. In fact this rule usually applies just to words where the vowel sound is /ee/ as in deceive, conceive, receive, perceive and ceiling.

In addition, other words that contain the vowel sound /ee/, but don’t contain a ‘c’, are also spelt ei. For example, protein, caffeine, seize, neither and either.

Words that contain the vowel sound /ay/ as in ‘beige’, tend to be spelt ei, even though there is no ‘c’ in sight. For example, freight, vein, weigh, neighbour, feint, sleigh, weight, inveigle.

So, it is important that students understand that ‘spelling rules’ are rarely without exceptions.



Spelling

Most commonly misspelt words

In the grid below are listed over 150 words that are commonly misspelt in the English language. These have been drawn from the Oxford English Corpus (compiled by Oxford Dictionaries) and also from the 2014 National Curriculum for English, Appendix 1: Spelling.

Some words have specific letters underlined to show that this is where spelling errors often occur.

accommodate conscience further opportunity sincere (ly)

accompany conscious glamorous parallel soldier

according controversy government parliament stomach

achieve convenience guarantee persistent successful

across correspond guard persuade sufficient

aggressive criticize happened pharaoh suggest

amateur curiosity harass physical supersede

ancient definite hindrance piece surprise

apparent desperate (ly) humorous prejudice symbol

appearance determined identity politician system

appreciate develop (no final e) immediate (ly) privilege tattoo

attached dictionary independent possession temperature

available dilemma individual preferred tendency

average disappear interfere profession therefore

awkward disappoint interrupt programme thorough

bargain embarrass irresistible pronunciation tomorrow

believe environment knowledge queue tongue

bizarre equip (-ped, -ment) language receive truly

bruise especially leisure recommend twelfth

business exaggerate liaise relevant unfortunately

calendar excellent lightning religious until

category existence marvellous remember variety

cemetery explanation mischievous restaurant vegetable

chauffeur familiar muscle resistance vehicle

colleague finally necessary rhyme weird

coming fluorescent neighbour sacrifice wherever

committee foreign noticeable secretary which

commitment forty nuisance separate yacht

communicate forward occasion shoulder

competition frequently occupy siege

completely friend occur signature



Spelling

Top tips for improving spelling

With the increasing emphasis on spelling in the National Curriculum, in both primary and secondary education, students should be well aware of their own level of spelling accuracy.

Strategies for improving spelling are best tailored to suit individual students’ learning styles, but the following tips may be useful.

1 Read as much as possible, preferably texts that use Standard English and are written in substantial paragraphs, rather than just short text ‘feeds’.

2 Write as much as possible, using a spellchecker or dictionary to check your spellings.

3 Note down words that you regularly misspell and learn them.

4 Use mnemonics to remind yourself how to spell tricky words, e.g. because: big elephants can always understand small elephants

5 Play spelling games, such as quizzes, scrabble and crosswords.

6 Explore word origins which may help to explain some tricky spellings. For example:

the sound /k/ spelt ‘ch’ (Greek origin) e.g. chorus, chemist, character

the sound /sh/ spelt ‘ch’ (French origin) e.g. brochure, chalet

the sound /s/ spelt ‘sc’ (Latin origin) e.g. scene, discipline, science.

7 Increase your awareness of word families, so that knowing how to spell one word will help you to spell another word in the same family, e.g. danger, dangerous, dangerously.

8 Get into the habit of proofreading both your own and other people’s work.


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